Top 10 Military Tanks

aeromaxx777

The Top Ten

1Merkava

Claiming to be the second best in the world for military technology, Israel put its technological knowledge to work. The Merkava (Chariot in English) showed most of its efforts in the 80's and the Gulf War for being a stand alone MBT. With the engine in the front rather than the back, this gave the Merkava an advantage for armor and crew protection.

Incredible tank! Especially now that it uses the worlds most up to date anti tank missile defense system

With out a doubt the best

The best tank in history when it comes to armor, innovative in crew safty for it's design puting the engine in the front and having a door in the back, can go in every terrain, extremely high accuracy and fire power, and has the ability to transport infantry troops and bring them to the heart of the battle, carrting them inside and letting them exit through the doors in the back.

the abrams is practically immortal because of its composite armor. it has a 120mm main weapon and a few machine guns. its crammed full of almost alien like technology

The original M1 Abrams model from the early 1980's was considered the best tank ever made. Yes, a Leopard or a Challenger could give it one hell of a fight, but this tank has just been proven time and time again to be the legend of all battle tanks.

Unlike it's newer models, such as the M1A1 and M1A2 varients, this one has many features that changed how tank fighting can be done forever. A true relic to all military junkies and historians.

The original M1 Abrams from 1980 was called to be the best tank of all time. The technology advances it had were definitely one's to cause the Leopards on. From observation, the original M1 Abrams has been proven to be more effective and more useful than the M1A2 and that's a fact.

This is the best. You guys only have 5 comments so you can't really have solid evidence. The word CLAIM mean there lying.

The only reason why the M1 Abrams is ranked first is because most of the people who vote here are Americans who just won't believe that there is in fact something around that is better than their tanks

I would say this is the currently the most powerful tank in the world but with that being said, it is hardly revolutionary for its time. It is quite comparable to other western tanks such as the Challenger or Abrams. I feel as if this tank has been voted to #1 because it is technically speaking "the most powerful tank of all time" due to the fact that it is the best modern example, however is it really the most powerful tank of all time - for its time? How many wars has it won? Sure it has only lost a single crew member in combat but that must be put into perspective, how much time on the battlefield have these tanks actually spent after all?

Best tank and just happen to be in the Swedish armed forces. Its history has been long and far standing. It has my vote!

This should be first. It doesn't matter how modern or advanced the Abrams is, an ungodly amount of them have been destroyed while this beasts death count still stands proudly at zero. The only reason I don't have an opinion on the leopard is because it hasn't even entered combat yet.

The challenger mk2 has praticaly impervious armour which has been able to whithstand anti-tank mines/missiles and has a world record for hitting a moving target from around 5.5km away. Along with its AP rounds it can distroy an enemy tank before it had even seen the challenger coming.

Also it has a excellent operating range unlike the m1 abrams which needs a ridiculous amount of fuel to operate even over short distances

The best tank in the world is the tank that is indestructible. The Abrams is massively overrated and its (British) armour is not as good as the Chally. Look at how many world records the Challenger holds. Nothing comes close.

There is no other place for this demon of a vehicle then first as not one has been destroyed in combat enough said

In terms of a specific weapon system's influence over the course of a war, T34 stand out supreme in military history. In T34 the soviets had a a bulk tank immensely superior to the German bulk tanks, making up for the German superiority in moral and training during the first stages of the war. This, along with other factors, gave the soviets the breathing space for regrouping and getting even. Later on, equipped with an new turret, a superior gun and well-trained troops, T34 spearheaded the largest offensive the world has ever seen. I am aware of no tank that influenced the course of a conflict (and the design of tanks) so deeply.

The Leopard tank DID NOT SERVE IN WW2 it was developed in 1965. The leopard VK1602 light tank was planned by the Nazi's as a recon vehicle but never was built. The T34 is the best ever the Tiger was a better built tank but was difficult to maintain on the battle field. The T34 was easy to drive, maintain and built in the tens of thousands. It was fited on the fly with a 75 mm gun or a self propeled gun when needed. The sloped armour was revolutionary. It won the Eastern Front.

This deserves to be the first because in it's time had fairly average armor and a fairly average gun. Not to mention it's sloping armor which reduced the chance for a shell to penetrate through it's armor and the sloping armor was new to it's time. The best thing about this tank is that it was very cheap to produce. RUSSIA PWNS

T-34 was the start of all the modern tanks we know. It should be number 1.

The tiger tank when mentioned sent fear through allied tank crew. It's frontal armour is virtually invincible to most allied tanks. The only way for a T/34 or a Sherman to destroy a tiger was to get in close and hit it from the side. No easy feat since a tiger with it's awesome 88mm gun could destroy a T/34 before it ever got close. I think it should be number 1

Germanys great successes can not finished without one of the Greatest Tanks of all time. It's strength in numbers and toughness at the time was so excellent, that it top off the Sherman by a long shot. But, it too, had mechanical failures of its own. Main reason why it's said to fail can go along with many other panzers of its time, it was too expensive compared to its T-34 opponents.

When this tank came to the battlefield, the Russians really find out what the word fear means. This tank is the best tank in the history just its name has launched the panic. The Russians claimed that they destroyed more tanks than were made only to raise the moral.

When mentioned, it struck fear into the allied forced. it had a monster gun and armor. Took on the soviet T34 and the American Sherman. not even the challenger could beet it. it was the most powerful tank in ww2.

It may have gotten its butt kicked by the tigers, but one thing to remember is that this tank had way more survivors than the tiger. Mainly because of the amount of malfunctions in the tiger tank. This left them trapped and weak in the middle of a battle. Also they ran out of fuel 50 percent of the time also making them vulnerable. Most documentaries forget to include these facts. The tiger only wins if it doesn't have any malfunctions. I'm not saying the Sherman is perfect though. It also has some malfunctions.

It was incredibly easy to produce. It was considered to be incredibly reliable, even the soviets with their T-34 masterpiece loved this tank. The controls are so easy to use even an idiot could figure them out. The Sherman sported a wide range of variants. They were equipped with flamethrowers, AA guns, rocket launchers, smaller cannons, larger cannons, and could become bridging units if need be.

Accurate, easily produced, and realiable in engagements the Sherman showed us just what it can do. This battle tank was used for many wartime situations not only including both the Pacific and European tours, but also in the Vietnam and Korean wars too.

This tank was actually pretty crappy. its armour in general was pretty weak, shells were not very strong and not a threat at all to the (superior in every way) German tanks. although it was not very good in general, there are some strong points like it being pretty mobile, and produced in mass numbers.

The t-90ms has been severely updated from the older t-90 models it brings to the table modern fire and control systems and improved defensive and offensive capabilities which can rival even the Abrams. What is not understand is that the T-90 has been upgraded because of the constant effort by the Russian military to improve their weapon systems. The ability of the T-90 to adapt and overcome can not be understated and is the greatest part of the weapon system that has served the Russian military from 1992 to present day and is still a very capable and competitive weapon system in the international community. - Danieltfsmop

Originally named after the T- 72BU, the T-90 is the most current tank in the Russian Federations services. Similar to most modern MBT's, the T-90's toughness suits its purpose on the field of action. It also has been seen to successfully drive underwater and get hit by 7 RPG's but still remains operational.

Its a great tank due to its speed and agility its got a smoothbore weapon and it is equiped with reactive armor therefor its a great tank plus - ITS RUSSIAN, by the way I know it not going to be # 1-5 but I do know its better than the darn merkava

It was known as the heaviest tank in history and weighing at almost 2 million pounds, this beast can't be mistaken. The thought of what it could do on the field would be mind boggling. Sadly, it never saw the field of war and only two were ever made. The first was destroyed in a bombing, while the second was captured by the soviets.

First one is not destroyed by bombing. It didn't had turret and ammo

It would not be able take a shot but it would give a shot

For one it's just MASSIVE!it looks intimidating and would DOMINATE with some current-world technology.

10M1A2 Abrams

Coolest tank ever man watch its video on YouTube its awesome

From its startout in the Gulf War to now, America has produced what is perhaps the Best Tank ever made. Though older models showed problems, it didn't stop it from becoming a hell bent fighting machine. Packed with a modern gun, super armor, and a well maintanced crew, this MBT shows many promises for a tank that was not made in large numbers during production.

The Contenders

11T-14 ARMATA

This tank is the the first of the new generation of tanks.

Its an all weather tank it can protect it self

Should be number one

As a M1-A2 SEP Abrams gunner with combat experience, I can tell as a simple matter of fact that the Armata, though untested in combat, is on paper, simply the best operational tank in the world. Let's not forget too, that at a third the cost of my Abrams, the economic impact in a real world scenario gains huge points as well.

Many claim that its the best MBT in the world today by stats. Indeed the Germans created a unique tank that could seem unstoppable. But, it's lacking in battle history on the field, that still doesn't mean that it's deadly. Everything about it is superior, the ability to drive in deep waters to even being more fuel efficient than the American Abrams tank.

13T-72

Just simple mass production

Did great in the gulf war no sarcassum

14Arjun

Considering this is the first indigenous tank from India, it's a great, on par with most modern tanks, which have already gone though series of enhancements

This is has the best ever turret of any tank able to penitrate 167mm of steel alloy type 3 armour!

Much better than the original Tiger but still the without the original, this tank wouldn't have been made and if I were to give a trophy for the best tank, nah I'll just order two trophies and give 'em both each - Neonco31

Ok how is this thing down here do you idiots know that Germany plans to re use them upgraded!?!?

It was a very powerful tank. It could knock out an tank

In my opinion and I have done a lot of research into W.W.11 tanks nothing could beat a Tiger 2. Unless the tank broke down or ran out of gas otherwise forget about it no contest.

The Pz. Kfw. V Panther was the best operational Main Battle Tanks of WWII. It's primary advantages over other tanks of the time were it's strong angled frontal armor, faster turret traverse, and speed. It's 75mm gun also had excellent range and accuracy. Now remember that the 75mm American short guns and 57mm Soviet AT guns were also accurate, but they could maintain stopping power at long ranges like the German guns could. Building a tank that could hit a target at 1200 Meters wasn't that difficult, but building a tank that could DESTROY targets at that range was an entirely different story. However, like many German Vehicles of the time, the Panther was over-engineered, and thus very expensive to produce. It also carried sufficient side armor, but was still prone to AT Rifle hits. - Operation_Fortitude

After the initial faults were fixed it performed better than any other tank of the war, this was because it had a overall better cannon (7.5cm KWK 42L/70) and its armour was almost immune to the cannons of the day and some later guns, it was fast for its size and was better at cross country than others

Panther has everything like tiger (it also includes good armor) but it's much faster!

It was an awesome thing

22Panzer IV

Main battle tanks were important for fighting later in the war. Light and medium tanks became more reliable at the moment and the Germans had what they needed. As an overall great Medium sizer tank, the Pz. IV became a popular panzer on most of the European frontlines.

23Al-Khalid

Designed to survive everything and it could very well do so with some modern weapons. And armour.

Supplied to two armies including the United Kingdom and oman army. The newer design off the Challenger I, sent in for many peacekeeping missions in the Middle East. Many missions showed that it was impenetrable to all enemy fire, except for IED's.

The Challenger 2 may be slightly heavier than most MBT's there for slightly slower, neither was it built in as many numbers as the T-54/55 or as successful as the T-34 but it has the best gun and with a rifled barrel so it hits what you're aiming at, the best in targeting technology, best life support systems, best camo fitted and best in MBT armour. It's also not as bigger target as the M60 or the Abrams

Arjun is a word of sanskrit language (oldest language ), arjun means Lion. It has 93 up-gradation on arjun mk 1. It is mix machine of t-90 and Abrams m1a1, with best parts of German, Israelis, French and British technologies. It has above average accurate gun and one of the best protection of armor kanchan. Arjun scores batter than t-90 in field trial, it is much more cheaper than Abrams.

This tank is product of Ex Yugoslavia but the main of all produce was in Croatia. They upgrade him in M95 Degman in late "90.

37Centurion Mk 1

How is the best tank EVER not in the top 10? It served from the end of WW2 to now in some countries and preceded ALL other MBTs, yet I find it 36th. With a powerful gun and thick armour, it could take on any tank of its day and come out victorious. Even now, it is still an effective weapon, so why isn't it no1?

Centurion is undoubtedly one of the greatest tank designs of all time. It was in service around the world as a universal tank for decades and is still in use as a combat tractor.Saw service in North Korea with the British where it was very valuable as a force multiplier.Also with the Australians during the Vietnam War.Showed itself to be the best tank of its time in the 6 Day War and Yom Kippur War where armoured units such as the 7th and Barack brigades faced down T55 and T62 tanks who sometimes outnumbered them 15-1. Awesome tank.

38M60 Patton

39C1 Ariete

Italian Mbt.

40M41 Walker Bulldog

This tank is awesome. It even serves today in some countries.

41Chieftain FV4201

Truly the epitome of British tank engineering, making a lasting impression on all modern 21st MBT's around the world. Made in the 1960's with major advances in technology, such as the supine driving position, allowing the hull to be sloped even further and add more protection, the 120mm rifled gun allowing the Chieftain to outgun and outrange the heavy Leopard 1 and Russian tanks, highly classified Chobham Armour which is still in use today on the Challenger and M1A2 Abrams MBT's and finally the most vital addition to any British armoured vehicle, the boiling vessel; allowing the crew to make their tea in the safety of the tank.All of these allowed the Chieftain to be the chief in armour supremacy from the 1960's and continues to do so as models are still in service with nations, and the formidable Merkava tanks were based on the Chieftains design. It truly deserves the title 'most formidable tank'.However I do have to admit it has it's downsides, during the Iran-Iraq war the ...more

This tank truly deserves the title 'most formidable tank in history'

Designed in the 1960's the Chieftain is much older than all other MBT's used by major powers and yet can still stand up to them, all thanks to the revolutionary designs created solely for the Chieftain. The highly classified Chobham armour which is still in use today by Challengers 2's and M1A2's, the latest in rifled gun technology allowing it to outrange and even outgun some tanks which are used today and not to mention the most vital addition to any British armoured vehicle, the boiling vessel allowing tea to made safely in the confines of the tank.To prove it's worth multiple nations around the world still use the Chieftain even if the British Army doesn't, and the Merkava tank was even based off of the Chieftain!The only downside is it's engine, it not being strong enough to power the beast that is the Chieftain.

42T-95 Degman

Croatian-planned mbt. Sadly, only prototype was made but ot would be very good Croatian tank

Thos tank is easy to produce and has armor that can withstand a serious beating. It uses steel boxes with several layers of spaced armor on them, it's called appliqué armor. An Enigma was able to survive 15 MILAN AT Missiles successfully but it was then knocked out by a Helicopter.

46KV-1

Good for defense, which is cool

47PL-01 Concept

The newest tank by far. Made by Polish,this tank has thermal camouflage and smoke grenades. Turret is remote controlled and has autoloading mechanism. while it is not yet build, first prototype will be finished in 2016, and between 2018 and 2020 mass production will start

It was designed as replacement for the M60 patton series as new American mbt. However MBT-70 program failed and was replaced by today s M1 abrams series. But its considired as grandfather of Abrams and Leopard tanks. It had 152mm cannon. Design is very similar to M1 Abrams though.